This stromboli recipe features the best homemade pizza dough and an easy homemade pizza sauce, rolled up with sliced salami, pepperoni, and shredded cheese, and then baked until perfectly golden brown and crispy.
Is it a pizza? A calzone? A sandwich? No, itza Stromboli! This Stromboli recipe starts with the best homemade pizza dough that gets topped with plenty of cheese, salami, pepperoni, and an easy homemade pizza sauce. It’s then rolled up into a tight log and baked until the crust is perfectly golden brown and crispy. Slice and serve with a side of sauce for dipping and dinner is ready!
How to Make Stromboli:
What you will need:
- 1 recipe for homemade pizza dough
- Homemade or store-bought pizza sauce
- 8 oz. shredded mozzarella cheese
- ¼ pound sliced salami
- ¼ pound sliced pepperoni
Homemade Pizza Dough:
Sure, you could use a store-bought pizza dough if you wanted. But homemade pizza dough tastes sooo much better than store-bought, and it’s easy to make using simple ingredients:
- Active dry yeast: 2 and ¼ tsp. (1 standard packet)
- Warm water: Warm water activates the yeast. You want it lukewarm and not hot, about 100° F.
- Olive oil: Oil adds moisture and also makes the dough easier to work with.
- Sugar: Sugar feeds the yeast causing it to ferment, it also makes the crust crispier and keeps moisture inside the dough.
- Salt: Crucial for flavor.
- Garlic powder: Optional, for extra flavor.
- Bread flour OR all-purpose flour: Bread making purists will swear up and down that ’00’ bread flour is the only acceptable flour to use for making pizza dough. I’ve made this using bread flour and using all-purpose and the pizza came out delicious with both of them. So if you have bread flour, great, but if not all-purpose flour is totally fine.
How to Make Homemade Pizza Dough:
- In a large bowl, combine warm water, yeast, oil, and sugar. Let sit for a few minutes until the yeast is dissolved. It should be slightly foamy. Add in salt and garlic powder. This can also be done in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment.
- Add in the flour slowly. Start with 2 and ½ cups and use your hands to form into a dough, or mix in the stand mixer on low speed. Add more flour until the dough is formed and doesn’t stick to your hands. I usually need about 3 cups total. Knead the dough for a few minutes with your hands or in the mixer on high speed.
- Form the dough into a ball and place in a lightly greased bowl, cover the bowl with a damp kitchen towel and let the dough rise for 1 hour until doubled in size.
Punch down the dough to release the air and refrigerate until ready to use.
Homemade Pizza Sauce:
Homemade pizza sauce is really easy to make and only takes about 5 minutes. To make it just saute onion and garlic in oil, then stir in tomato sauce, tomato paste, brown sugar, and season with Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Then blend until smooth and let cool.
Assemble and Bake the Stromboli:
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and sprinkle with flour. Remove the pizza dough from the fridge and dust each side with more flour. Work the dough into a 12 x 10″ rectangle and place it on the prepared pan.
Spread sauce on top of the dough, leaving about an inch around the edges.
Spread half of the shredded cheese on top of the sauce.
Top with your toppings and the rest of the shredded cheese.
Brush the edges with a beaten egg and roll the stromboli up into a tight log. If your dough is too soft and is difficult to roll up, place the whole thing in the refrigerator for about 15 minutes. This will firm the dough back up and make it easier to work with.
Once you have the stromboli rolled into a tight log, brush the top with more beaten egg and use a sharp knife to cut diagonal slits on top.
Sprinkle with parmesan cheese and fresh chopped parsley, if desired, and bake in a 450° oven for 15-20 minutes until golden brown.
Slice and serve with extra sauce on the side for dipping, enjoy!
Stromboli Recipe
Ingredients
Homemade Pizza Dough:
- 2 and ¼ tsp. active dry yeast, (1 standard packet)
- 1 cup warm water, (not hot)
- 1 tbsp. olive oil
- 1 tsp. sugar
- ½ tsp. salt
- 1 tsp. garlic powder
- 3 cups bread flour OR all-purpose flour
Homemade Pizza Sauce:
- 1 tbsp. olive oil
- ½ med. onion, chopped, about ½ cup
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 - 15 oz. can tomato sauce
- 1 - 6 oz. can tomato paste
- 1 tbsp. brown sugar
- ¾ tsp. salt
- 2 tsp. Italian seasoning
Stromboli:
- 8 oz. mozzarella cheese, shredded
- ¼ lb. sliced salami
- ¼ lb. sliced pepperoni
- 1 egg, beaten
- grated parmesan cheese, optional
- fresh parsley, chopped, optional
Instructions
Make the Homemade Pizza Dough:
- In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment, add the yeast, warm water, oil, and sugar. Let sit for a few minutes until the yeast is dissolved. Add in salt and garlic powder, and then the flour. Start with 2 and ½ cups of flour and knead with your hands or in the stand mixer on low speed. Add more flour, about ¼ cup at a time, until the dough doesn't stick to your hands, or is coming off the sides of the bowl in the stand mixer. I usually need a total of 3 cups of flour.
- Grease the bowl with oil, form the dough into a ball and place it in the bowl. Cover the bowl with a damp kitchen towel and let the dough rise for 1 hour until doubled in size. Punch down the dough to release the air and refrigerate until ready to use.
Make the Homemade Pizza Sauce:
- In a medium saucepan, heat the oil and add the chopped onion and saute until soft. Add the minced garlic and saute for another minute. Stir in the tomato sauce, tomato paste, brown sugar, salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning. Add the sauce to a blender and blend until smooth, allow the sauce to cool in the fridge.
Assemble and Bake the Stromboli:
- Preheat your oven to 450°F, line a baking pan with parchment paper and sprinkle with flour.
- Remove the dough from the fridge and dust both sides with flour. Shape the dough into a 12 x 10" rectangle and place it on the prepared pan.
- Spread the cooled pizza sauce over the top, leaving about an inch around the edges. Top with half of the shredded cheese, sliced pepperoni, sliced salami, and then the rest of the shredded cheese.
- Brush the edges with beaten egg and roll into a tight log. If the dough is very soft and difficult to roll up, you can refrigerate the whole thing for about 15 minutes, which will firm the dough back up and make it easier to work with.
- Brush the top with beaten egg and use a sharp knife to cut diagonal slits, about 1-2 inches apart.
- Sprinkle the top with parmesan cheese and chopped parsley, if desired. Bake for 15-20 minutes until the crust is golden brown. Slice and serve with more sauce for dipping.
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